Delivery.com now makes its portfolio of over 10,000 restaurants available through the Ordr.in API. Additionally, Ordr.in has opened its entire platform up to the developer community, and Microsoft has stepped up as the first interested developer. Microsoft worked with Ordr.in to build a Windows Phone SDK and reference app.

Tereza Nemassanyi, Microsoft Entrepreneur-In-Residence, told PW:

“Ordr.in’s mission to empower developers is one we share, and working together, we make each other better. Microsoft’s developer community is millions strong and growing. It’s all giving great tools to to make great apps.”

PW caught up with Ordr.in founder and CEO, David Bloom, about the announcements. Bloom was expressly excited about both partnerships. It's not everyday that a startup opens its platform to the developer community, and Microsoft joins the base as the first developer. However, key for Bloom and Ordr.in, lies in the nature of Microsoft's interest (i.e. tools for great apps). Bloom told PW about its metrics to judge success:

"Our metrics are API keys, apps and orders. We believe the Microsoft SDK will be very popular, especially because the UI for these platforms are unique. Developers can really use their imaginations. Plus it is no secret that there are fewer apps on the Windows platform than on iOS and Android. Apps that are established early will have a huge advantage as Windows and Windows Phone matures."

Ordr.in never ceases to be amazed by the developer community. It continues to see developers use its APIs in ways that it never expected, and it feels the new partnerships will only continue to drive such behavior. By the end of 2013, Ordr.in expects at least 12 apps built on the platform to be live. When PW asked Bloom about its target developer audience, he responded:

"We are concentrating on building the best platform and letting developers do with it what they will. And the developer community surprises us all the time using our APIs in ways we never imagined. We like to say 'if you can imagine it, you can build it.' And so far that is true."

Ordr.in continues to believe in and fuel a complete redesign of the restaurant industry. It streamlines app development and simply gives developers access to what they need when developing food-centric apps. The Microsoft SDK continues to remove barriers to entry for such apps. Blooms thoughts on the future of Ordr.in and where he sees the industry moving confirm:

"Our APIs strip away so much overhead, letting developers concentrate on what they do best- build apps. The diversity of apps that our APIs power grows all the time. From what we see in our pipeline these trends are accelerating."

About the author:Eric Carter
Eric the founder of Dartsand and Corporate Counsel for a specialty technology distributor. He is a frequent contributor to technology media outlets and also serves as primary legal counsel for multiple startups in the Real Estate, Virtual Assistant, and Software Development Industries. Follow me on Google+